Google, Samsung and Motorola: bizarre love triangle

Recently, the word has been circling that Google are fearing Samsung's saturation of both the mobile and Android market - though there's more concern surrounding the latter.

Reports from the ever anonymous, though seemingly "reliable" sources from the Wall Street Journal detail that Samsung's dominance in the market could impede on Google's revenue making, should Samsung decide to reconsider the amount they be paid for pulling in Google ad-based profits on their devices. Currently, Samsung earns 10% of profits from ads generated by Google with thanks to the amount of Samsung devices that run Android, and word as of late has been that Samsung may choose to increase this percentage.

Without doubt, Google's acquisition of Motorola purely for patents appears a little sketchy, but at the same time, holds up. Apart from the September releases of their flagship RAZR HD, along with the RAZR M, and RAZR i, these devices are the only recent devices we've seen from Motorola, under new CEO and former Googler, Dennis Woodside. Their events at the time marked the beginning of a new direction for Motorola Mobility under the watchful eye of Google, but since these events, Motorola have been awfully quiet.

Why is that so?


If Google had purchased Motorola purely for its patents portfolio, then the need for a new direction and 'New Motorola' wouldn't be needed. Motorola could have continued as it were, even with a former Google employee at the reigns. The fact that Google has been selling of sections of Motorola Mobility, and recently, production plants in Brazil, and China to have been sold to Flextronics, with an agreement that they would still manage the production of undisclosed devices of the Android variety, rightly raises rumours.

One of Motorola's manufacturing plants in Tianjin, China -
Source: VentureData

The X-Phone all of a sudden springs to mind, and it would explain why Google and Motorola have kept mostly hush about the likeliness of consumers seeing this devices anywhere in the near future. A device that could be the prodigal son of Google, made as it was intended to be, without any interference from the OEM.

A phone, made specifically to compete with the iPhone 5 and Galaxy SIV, not only on the hardware and software front, but most significantly with regards to price, could pose a sizeable a threat to Samsung.

Samsung has made quite the name for itself in the mobile market, and by right it's not be an easy rise for the Korean manufacturer. They continue to spend most of their time outside of the boardroom inside courtrooms, where they frequently duke it out with Apple over patent disputes. Despite their somewhat unclean reputation, their Galaxy line (particularly the S and Note series), have been a favourite amongst the masses, and for good reason - innovation.

There have been countless discussions about OEMs and innovation, and as of late, Samsung have been at the forefront for thinking ahead and delivering features and new approaches to the use of the smartphone. They are essentially unmatched, and are only surpassed in some respects by the developers and engineers of the OS that their TouchWiz UI runs on top of - Google's Android.

Google, much like Samsung see what people are missing on their devices and actively seek to implement solutions, only they make these innovations available for any Android OEM to utilise on their devices at no charge. This has meant that Samsung has been able to take Android features and improve upon / re-brand them for their own devices. Examples such as Android Beam, known as S-Beam, Google Voice, known as S-Voice and more recently, PhotoSphere, to be called 'Orb'.

Samsung's Music Hub - Source: Engadget

Samsung have re-popularised features already available on Android devices and this might prove problematic for Google, particularly when Samsung then shifts users from services such as Play Music to their Music Hub service, which exists in Australia for customers, unlike Play Music. It's no wonder Google have reason to be worried, Samsung are on the ball and see opportunities where Google have failed to make an effort.

Hopefully Google will pick up its game, and not only  release a worthwhile and memorable device, but pay attention to the market outside the U.S. and Europe, because for now, Samsung is solidifying its place with consumers, and are building foundations which could be detrimental to Google, should their Tizen and Bada OS take-off, and a future Galaxy S / Note device feature the OS.